Agarwood

Agarwood: Recently, the global surge in demand for agarwood has led to excessive harvesting, pushing wild agarwood trees to the brink of extinction.

• About Agarwood: Aquilaria malaccensis, or agarwood, is a tree from the Thymelaeaceae family.

o It produces a fragrant resin, highly valued for perfumes and incense, known as Oud, Gaharu, or Agar.

o This resin forms when the tree is infected by a specific mould (Phaeoacremonium, previously Phialophora parasitica), which stresses the tree.

o Naturally, it takes nearly 10 years for the tree to mature in the wild.

o Found: Mainly in Northeast India – Assam, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Manipur.

o Tripura’s capital, Agartala, gets its name from the abundance of agarwood trees once found there.

o Significance: Revered in ancient Ayurvedic texts like Charaka Samhita for its healing properties and one of the costliest natural products globally.

o Used in religious rituals, medicines, and premium perfumes across the world.

o IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered

o CITES: Listed in Appendix II (regulated trade)

o Wildlife Protection Act (India): Schedule IV

o India has submitted a Non-Detriment Finding (NDF) to prevent agarwood from stricter trade scrutiny under CITES.